2025: A year marked by community engagement and involvement

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the citizens for their commitment in 2025. It is thanks to your involvement that several activities were able to take place, particularly at Lac-Hélène Park. We are also delighted to have been able to continue hosting events at our community relations office. Thank you for attending and contributing to these moments of exchange throughout the year.

A successful summer program at Lac-Hélène Park

Thanks to inspiring ideas from the neighborhood and the work of the Wasamac Mining Project Task Force subcommittee, the summer season was filled with a variety of activities:

• Distribution of tree seedlings in collaboration with the Organisme de bassin versant du Témiscamingue (OBVT) and the Association forestière de l’Abitibi-Témiscamingue (AFAT) as part of Tree Month;
• Neighborhood party to share the program of activities at Parc Lac-Hélène and kick off the season;
• Outdoor cinema under the stars in collaboration with the Évain Recreation Committee;
• Yoga classes to recharge and relax;
• Workshop to raise awareness about bats and build bat boxes;
• Summer Carnival, a family celebration that was a highlight of the program.

These events brought together more than 200 participations. Thank you all!

More details in this Facebook post: https://fb.watch/D-V2Q20OeG/

Activities at Lac-Hélène Park

Community initiatives throughout the year

• In addition to the summer program, several activities marked 2025:
• Family activity with a sugar shack theme during spring break in March;
• Community garden in collaboration with the Petite Étincelle school;
• Historical meeting with former Wasamac mine workers, which allowed us to collect unique anecdotes, life stories, and valuable details about the practices and working conditions of the time.

Rencontre avec les anciens travailleurs de la mine Wasamac. From left to right: Réjean Vachon, Roy Pellerin, Guylain Laquerre, Yvon Lafond, Normand Lavoie, Michel Aubin

We also participated in initiatives in the Évain neighborhood, such as:

• The Easter activity organized by the Évain Recreation Committee, where more than 90 children accompanied by their parents visited the community relations office;
• Évain's 90th anniversary celebrations in September, with a kiosk and a “weighing the gold brick” activity that gave us a chance to chat with residents;
• Halloween, with the distribution of nearly 700 bags of candy and a photo booth activity that allowed families to take pictures of their costumes.
• We also participated in community support initiatives, such as distributing smile cookies and food baskets to the Bernard Hamel Resource Center. These actions demonstrate our desire to contribute to community life.

Thank you again to all the volunteers and participants! Your involvement made 2025 a remarkable year.